Quilting with YLI Colors Thread

I have had this thread for sometime – not sure why I originally purchased it but maybe just because it is so pretty!  This is Colors by YLI, a variegated cotton thread that is quite thick.  It is a 30 wt. 3 ply thread so used a size 16 topstitch needle and increased the stitch length to 2.5.  The stitching on the left in the photo below has very bad tension.  I decided to re-thread the top thread and re-thread the bobbin before fiddling with the tension which I had set at 3.75.  That did the trick so am thinking that the top thread had not been in the tension discs when I first started stitching.  The second photo shows the back of the sample with the very poor tension on the right side.I again used Bottom Line thread in the bobbin and the sample has Mountain Mist White Rose 100% cotton batting.  As you can see this is a very small sample as I didn’t want to waste much of this thread since it was heavier there would not be as much wound on the spool in the first place.  I also found that when quilting with this thread I had better results when quilting at a slower speed.

The variegated color ranges from very dark to very light so I will want to keep this in mind when I use it on a real quilt.  It does make a bold statement though and the thread is pretty smooth and free of excess lint.

Until Later,
Lynn

Quilting with Magnifico Thread

Magnifico thread is from the Superior Threads company and is a trilobal polyester thread.  Because of it being trilobal it is very shiny and is labeled for embroidery and quilting.  It is a 2 ply, 40 wt. thread and I used a size 14 topstitch needle to quilt this sample.  Batting is unknown brand and type but think it has to be mostly cotton by the feel of it.  Bobbin is Bottom Line by Superior Threads.

I have no complaints about this thread at all – stitched well and good tension so didn’t make any adjustments to the tension and kept the stitch length to the default length of 2.  Like all the threads I have tried from Superior Threads this one performed well.  My only complaint might be the price as threads from this company tend to be a bit high but the quality is there too so maybe one off sets the other.

I sometimes got it a bit of a hurry when quilting these samples and some of my backtracking doesn’t follow the line it was supposed to…what can I say but I was running out of time to get all my samples finished in time to give my program so rushed through some of them. 

It is kind of funny about testing all these different threads that it doesn’t take more than a couple of lines of stitching to get a feel for the thread and how it is going to behave most of the time.  The rest of the sample is to make sure my first observations were correct.

Until later,
Lynn

Quilting with Floriani Thread

This is Floriani Embroidery thread, the kind used in embroidery machines or regular machines with embroidery modules.  I decided to try it for quilting since the Isacord thread was also an embroidery thread for the same use and it quilted just fine.

Floriani thread is a 40 weight/2 ply polyester thread and I used a size 12 topstitch needle to do the stitching on my Bernina 730 using the BSR (Bernina Stitch Regulator.)  The bobbin thread used was Bottom Line by Superior Threads. 

I did stitch using the default length (2) and tension (4.0) and it stitched beautifully.  It has a great shine and the backtracking was not hard to do.  The backtracking darkened those lines a little but not overly so.  I don’t know what the batting was in this sample but can tell it is some sort of cotton but don’t know the brand or type.

I would definitely use this thread to quilt another piece.  The color selection of this thread is great since embroiders need lots of tints and shades to do their embroidery so you can buy just about any color your little hear desires. 

This small cone does have a place on the bottom to wrap the thread tails but the thread was so slick it wanted to slide off the spool in spite of having the tail secured.  I used one of the pony tail holders on the center of the spool and this contained the fly away thread.

It sure was a lot of fun to stitch these samples as I got to practice some old favorite quilting designs and try new ones.  These samples will be a great resource for ideas in the future.

Until Later,
Lynn

Chicken Salsa Soup

I  recently got this simple hearty soup recipe from one of my daughters that is so tasty as well as quick and easy.   Here is the recipe in case you want to make it too.  As you can see there are not too many ingredients and you might already have them in the cupboard.1 (14.5 oz) can of Chicken Broth, low sodium, low fat

1 (13 oz) can of chopped chicken breast

1 (15.25 oz) can of Black Beans low sodium 

1 cup(s) fat free Salsa or Picante sauce

1/2 medium Onion chopped - optional

Put the chicken into a soup pot and break it up into small chunks then pour the rest of the ingredients into the pot and stir to blend. Bring it to a boil then turn down the heat and simmer for 15 minutes and serve.

I figured out the Weight Watchers points and it is 4 P+ for a 1 cup serving so is quite low. It is very filling and quite delicious.

I made it once with Salsa and once with Picante Sauce and it was good both times.  Both were a mild flavored sauce but you could use the medium or hot if you like it spicier.   Do use the low sodium beans and chicken broth as the Salsa and chicken have enough salt and the first time I didn't have the low sodium variety and the soup was a bit salty for my taste.  The original recipe didn't have the onion added but I like more onion than was in the Salsa but it is good without the onion.
See, I told you it was easy!

Enjoy,
Lynn